Jerez de la Frontera, May 4, 1997. All eyes are on one man: Alex Crivillé. On the verge of the biggest race of his career, he remains impassive, focused from the front row. At his side, killers. On the right side, a single man, in the person of Nobuatsu Aoki, on Honda. Left side, the Repsol Honda armada, with
Mick doohan et
Tadayuki Okada, on pole.
Break. In order to understand this episode, a little flashback is necessary. Arriving in 500cc for the 1992 season, the official Honda team – soon sponsored by Repsol – the poacher from Pons for 1994 with solid ambitions. However,
Mick doohan crushes all competition and flies to his first world champion title. The Australian doesn't just win. It is a real dictatorship. 143 points separate him from Cadalora, second, and 173 from Álex. Although the 1995 season was certainly more contested, the end result is the same.
Crivillé has made significant progress in the meantime. In 1996, he was certainly one of the favorites but his start to the season was complicated. When Jerez comes, the fourth round of the championship, he intends to raise the bar. Doohan started from pole, as usual, but Crivillé held on at the head of the race.
The closer the distance to travel gets, the closer “Mad Mick” gets. He has his prey in sight. On the last lap, Crivillé was still first but confusion spread to the stands. Indeed, it seems that the fans think that the race is over and invade the track even though the two men are engaged in a Dantesque battle!
Doohan, triumphant after his Dantesque success at the 1996 Spanish Grand Prix. Photo: Box Repsol
Crivillé, distracted, loses first place among the spectators (a legendary scene). In the last tight turn, he made a mistake and fell heavily, only being able to watch his teammate's victory in the distance. The disillusionment is immense. This year 1996 will be marked by its second places, seven in total, and a new lesson from Doohan.
The affront, in front of his audience, was immeasurable. Unfortunately, the first two races of 1997 did not work in his favor. The Spaniard finished second twice, each time behind Doohan. Is the latter unbeatable? Can he win every race in a season like Agostini did or
Surtees ?
Then comes Jerez, a year after the humiliation. Aoki
to her right, Doohan et Okada to his left. Once the start is given, Crivillé immediately takes control and comes out at the head of the Curva Expo'92. “Taddy” Okada, on fire, follows suit and appears threatening. Surprisingly, Doohan struggles to keep up with the pace set and gets bogged down around fourth place. That's not like him.
The course of the race is strange. Álex drives so fast that he becomes impossible to overtake, long before escaping. The opponents come up to him, try to slow down later by taking the rope but absolutely nothing helps, he always comes out in front.
The other hero of the day, Carlos Checa (Honda Pons), seems to be the only one who can even take the lead from Crivillé. But unable to keep up, “El Toro” overdoes it and falls. From now on, the Honda NSR500 marked with number 2 is progressing alone in the lead.
Far behind, Okada weakens and has to give way to Doohan in the final moments. Crivillé is in the zone, nothing can reach it and wins with a five-second lead.
Crivillé is often forgotten among world champions. Photo: Box Repsol
In the deceleration lap, he does not exult. Congratulated by a very sporty Okada, he grabs a Spanish flag and celebrates with tens of thousands of spectators. Crivillé is avenged, by winning “a la Doohan”, in front of Doohan. The circle is complete. However, he keeps his feet on the ground. As usual, Álex remains humble and measured in his post-race interview.
The rest of the season will leave no room for suspense. Mick went on to win ten consecutive races (which could have been thirteen if not for this feat), while Crivillé suffered a serious injury at Assen and was forced to miss a large part of the season.
The story of a beautiful rivalry, albeit unbalanced. Certainly,
Doohan was better than Crivillé, that is not the question. That day, after having suffered such disillusionment some time before, Álex was immensely great, whatever one thinks.
Photo: Box Repsol
